


Familiar of Zero: Sync of the Rebellion

by Rago_Dragovian



Category: Tales of Series, Tales of the Abyss, ゼロの使い魔 | Zero no Tsukaima | The Familiar of Zero
Genre: Action/Adventure, Adventure & Romance, Alternate Universe - Politics, F/M, Multi, Psychological Trauma, Slavery
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-16
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-19 01:14:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 20,624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29499384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rago_Dragovian/pseuds/Rago_Dragovian
Summary: He never saw any meaning to his existence and felt ashamed for being born. She tried to hold back her tears and ignore the constant shame that she felt. During the summoning ritual, Louise summons Sync the Tempest as her familiar and a shocking domino effect soon follows. The world slowly rips itself apart as both strive to surpass their stigmas. Will they hurt or help each other?
Relationships: Princess Henrietta de Tristain/Sync the Tempest, Siesta/Sync the Tempest, Sync the Tempest/Princess Henrietta de Tristain/Siesta
Comments: 4
Kudos: 1





	1. Ambivalence I

**Author's Note:**

> I decided to write this in dedication to one of the most fascinating but under appreciated God Generals of Tales of the Abyss. All of the God Generals had good depth that I felt was unexplored. Not that I blame the game makers, as the story was mostly meant to be about Luke's journey and he might honestly be the most realistic fictional character to display human characteristics.
> 
> This story will not follow the typical events of Familiar of Zero. It will be similar at first and then deviate from canon. Don't expect a rehash of the events with "x-character" filling in for the protagonist of the series. The plot will be entirely different.
> 
> This story will have spoilers for Tales of the Abyss, Familiar of Zero, and possibly other Tales of Series games too. You have been warned.

_I've always felt like my existence was meaningless,_ He thought as his disembodied spirit floated throughout the Planet's memory of Auldrant, _Deep down, I just knew that no matter what I did . . . what I accomplished . . . my life was meaningless. On a deep level, I was flawed, never good enough, always the problem to be thrown around, and never satisfying anyone's expectations. Always a disappointment to everyone who met me._

_So why didn't I kill myself, even back then? I still don't understand it. I don't understand myself. How can I have this gnawing desire for release - for liberation - from pain and suffering . . . but not do the deed? I don't understand. I try, and I try, and I try . . . reading, memorizing, making habits, and it all failed. I could never let go of this intrinsic self-revulsion and this deep sense of shame for being who I was._

_But it doesn't matter . . . I don't matter . . . nothing I ever did mattered. So, why feel so much pain?_

_The dead don't matter. When you die, all your emotions, your life's hopes, your desires, your shameful moments, and everything about you ceases to be part of the world. You don't matter. You don't need ceremonies, eulogies, remorseful well wishes, beliefs of going to an eternal paradise, and so forth . . . because you have died. The dead need nothing. They suffer no more, they are happy no more, and soon enough they'll be forgotten because so many countless people are so meaningless due to the vast amount of people who perish every day._

_So, why do I feel so much anger, regret, and hate despite my deep sense of shame that continues to control everything that I did? What the hell is the matter with me? Why can't I die in peace?_

_Why does it matter?_

_**"My Servant that exists somewhere in this world!"** _

_What?_

_**"My divine, beautiful, powerful familiar . . . I wish and assert from the bottom of my heart . . ."** _

_Who is saying that? What am I hearing? Just shut up, and let me be . . ._

_**"Answer my guidance . . . answer my wish . . . answer me from the depths of the Abyss! I summon thee, the one who is most suited to be my familiar."** _

* * *

Louise blushed as yet another resounding explosion enveloped the area due to her magic. _Oh Brimer, I sounded so desperate at the end of that speech . . . Please, let something, anything at all, have come forth. I can't stand the idea of being expelled. I've worked so hard . . . please, please, please! Something be there!_

The smoke and dust slowly cleared. Some people in the class were already shouting "Louise the Zero!" before the dust settled. Others were laughing.

The entire crowd went silent after the dust settled and a young man with spiky green hair, a white vest coat on top of a black military uniform, black combat pants, and black boots was kneeling on the ground with one arm. The figure slowly rose himself to full height and stood with a scowl as he looked around the area.

"What in the hell is going on?!" shouted Sync, he froze and looked over himself. "I'm . . . alive?! But how? The Replica and his friends killed me and went on to fight Van. By all rights, I should be dead . . ."

He looked to see a pink-haired girl and a group of youths. Sync scowled at them. "What is going on?!"

Louise and the crowd only heard a high pitched chirping noise when he spoke.

The group started speaking amongst themselves. They didn't seem to hear him as the pink haired girl was arguing with the oldest gentleman in the group. Some people in the crowd began jeering and laughing at him. _Alright, that's enough of this crap!_

Sync folded his hands together and began unleashing his fonic energy similar to the last time he fought the Replica and his group on the Replica Hod. The group of youths, the elder gentleman, and the pink haired girl froze and began shouting amongst themselves. Some students seemed to be trying to cast with their sticks. Sync took a deep breath and took a more critical look towards his surroundings. _As best as I can tell, these youths are students, those sticks are . . . wands? What the hell? I feel like I'm in some fairy tale._

Sync held the pressure as some of the students began shouting and pointing at him. He looked up and did a double-take as he saw two moons. _This is defying the fundamentals of logic . . . I'm not in Auldrant? Then again, the very fact I'm alive is in and of itself staggering._

He gazed toward the class and looked down in time to see the pink haired girl pointing her wand at him. A sudden explosion occurred right in front of his face but Sync only bent his knees and kept putting on the pressure. _I can handle more than this. The necromancer's Mystic Cage and the Replica's Radiant Howl couldn't keep me down for long, this is nothing compared to that!_

"Please stop!" shouted the pink haired girl. Her eyes wide and her body shaking.

Sync relented and stopped releasing his energy. He unclasped his hands and crossed his arms. He gazed at the entire class and their pets.

"Who are you, where am I, what am I doing here, and how did I get here?" said Sync, glaring at the pink haired girl. The girl frowned. She and many of her classmates were shaking in what Sync presumed to be fear. "I want a satisfactory explanation. If I don't get it, I'll detain one of you, kill anyone who fights back, and get my explanation through torture, if necessary."

The pink haired girl and the older gentleman gaped at him. Many of the crowd were turning various shades of blue and green, some gaped at him, and others gazed at him with widened eyes while their knees shook. One of them had already pissed themselves.

"Well?!" snapped Sync. Many of the students flinched. Sync smirked. _Fucking rabble; all the same wherever I go. Act like they're tough but in the end, they're pathetic cowards_.

"P - please sir, calm down!" said the elderly bespectacled gentleman. "I am Professor Colbert, you are in the Tristan school of magic in the continent of Helkeginia. Might I ask your name?"

"No, I don't recognize that continent or the location of this Tristan school on any map that I've studied," said Sync, observing the class before settling his glare at the teacher. "Exactly how did I get here and why are there two moons?"

"Ah, well, you were summoned here as part of a magical ritual that students undergo to become full-fledged mages." said Colbert, his fingers shook as he re-adjusted his glasses. "It is possible that . . . you were summoned from another world entirely different from ours."

The crowd gasped. Some began to murmur amongst themselves. Sync was only able to catch a few words. _Louise the Zero? What are they talking about?_

Sync let his arms fall to the side as he glanced at the nervous looking pink haired girl. The pink haired girl was shaking but her eyes didn't waver from his like the other students.

"This girl beside me is the one who summoned you as her Familiar. A familiar is meant to be a . . . life servant of sorts. Although, typically, people summon various kinds of animals and familiars are a type of pet that mages take care of." asked Colbert, Sync's scowl deepened and his fingers balled into fists. "Now, if we may have your name and perhaps some knowledge of your background?"

"Sync the Tempest, formerly one of the Six God Generals for the Order of Lorelei located in Daath. Although, I suppose that information is meaningless now. My work essentially consisted of intelligence gathering, subterfuge particularly psychological subterfuge, and assassination." said Sync, the crowd of students gasped. Some turned green, others stared at him with their mouths hung agape, and a few girls gave him lecherous gazes. The pink haired girl remained silent. The teacher's cheeks had turned a shade blue. "However, that's beside the point. How am I still alive? I can assure you that I was killed in action. I was one hundred percent dead. So, how am I here?"

"Z-zombie!" shouted one of the students, stupidly pointing a finger at Sync. "Louise the Zero summoned a zombie!"

A handful of the students proceeded to run back to the Castle in a panic. The professor put a palm to his forehead as he observed his more rambunctious students. Sync snorted as he watched them run away. The professor sighed before turning his attention back to Sync and Sync straightened his posture. The pink haired girl stood scowling and shaking at the fleeing students while the rest of the class jeered.

"If what you say is true, then the best I can surmise is that the magic of this world and your world's equivalent of magic caused your miraculous return to life. There are five different magical elements in our world; earth, fire, water, wind, and the Void." said Colbert, "It is possible that another element in your world or a special quirk of your world's magical properties allowed you a new life when transported here."

_Could I be a Replica with the memories of Sync?_ thought Sync, _No, that doesn't make sense. Every single one of the other Ion replicas and Asch's Replica had independent knowledge of their own. It can't be an original waking up in the Replica body either, because I'm a Replica myself with my body made of the seventh fonon. The original would be the real Fon Master Ion and that would only occur when he had a perfect copy. I'm an imperfect copy._

Sync carefully examined his clothes and performed some light stretches. _This definitely feels like my body. I took far more intense training and it definitely feels the same. But would I really know the difference? I can't be entirely sure but perhaps it no longer matters, if I'm in a new world?_

"The "magic" you speak of . . . in my world, they're referred to as fonons and there are seven different properties. Fire, water, wind, earth, light, darkness, and last one is - for lack of a better definition - sound or perhaps resonance would be a better term. Resonance is the most volatile and can create intense explosions capable of destroying entire cities when utilized improperly. Although, I don't use it much beyond controlled sealing artes that create narrowed and more specified areas to damage under the controlled sealing style." said Sync, Colbert's eyes widened. "At any rate, you mentioned that I'll be spending my life here from now on until the one who summoned me dies?"

"Ah yes, we should actually move along with the day's activities." said Colbert, clearing his throat and then turning to the pink haired girl. "Louise, if you could please complete the ritual? Your familiar seems to be quite unique and I would love to chat at length but we need to speed up things along so that we're done before the class ends."

"I, Louise Franscoise Le Blanc de La Valliere hereby invoke the familiar contract," said the pink haired girl, holding up her wand. She began walking towards Sync.

Sync could tell from her slow movements that she was nervous. She walked towards him while pointedly looking down at the grass. Once she was close enough, she raised her head and gazed at him directly in the eyes. Sync narrowed his eyes and straightened his posture.

Sync froze as he felt her sloppy, moist lips touch his. Sync immediately backed away to break the contact and scowled at her. "What the - What?!"

Sync grit his teeth as some encryption burned itself on his hand. He scowled at Louise.

"Just what did you do to me?!" snapped Sync.

Louise flinched and put her hands up. "I . . . I had to complete the ritual! The mark means that you're my familiar!"

Colbert's eyes widened as he glanced at the mark. Sync suddenly began to see spots and his everything had turned into a pair of threes moving in a circular motion.

"Damn it!" shouted Sync before falling to the ground unconscious.

* * *

Sync groaned as he got up to a sitting position. He surveyed his surroundings. _A bedroom?_

"Good, you're finally awake," said Louise, her hands were on her hips and she scowled down at him. "Now, let's get a few things straight. I summoned you, so that means you're my familiar. You better not give me any backtalk like earlier or else."

Sync quickly got to his feet and snorted. Louise narrowed her eyes. "Or else what?"

Louise turned around and opened her dresser. She took out an odd, thin stick and then turned back to Sync.

"Or else this!" snarled Louise, she hit Sync with the strange object.

Sync scowled at the light snip of pain. He grabbed the object from her and pulled it out of her hands.

"Hey!" said Louise, she began to growl. "Give it back!"

Sync put both his hands on the sides of the object and snapped it in two. Louise gaped at him. Sync threw the pieces on the floor.

"W - well . . . um . . . you still have to do my laundry!"

Sync turned his gaze to the floor and sighed.

* * *

Sync sipped his tea in the cafeteria and observed the students. _I can't believe that moron ordered me to wash her clothes. Psh, well, I finished it quickly. I've been doing menial tasks for myself for years so she can't complain._

"Thanks Siesta," said Sync, standing up upon seeing the maid that he had met last night. She had pointed to where the laundry rooms were. Siesta was walking over to him holding several trays, dishes, and tea cups. "but I can go to the back room and get this cleaned myself."

"What?" said Siesta, gasping in surprise. "Oh, no, no! It's quite alright! As a commoner, it's my duty to have it cleaned. You're a familiar, it would be unbecoming if a noble's familiar were to -"

Sync waved her off. "I've done tasks for myself all of my life. Besides, it really is no big deal, all I'm doing is walking to a room to clean the cup after drinking it. Thanks for serving it by the way."

"Oh but . . ." Siesta stopped and blushed as Sync carefully bowed to her before walking to the back room. "I - it's improper! As a familiar, you shouldn't lower yourself to . . ."

"It's not lowering myself to clean up after myself," said Sync waving a hand, he walked to the back room and entered.

Siesta flushed and quickly returned to her assignment of taking the tea cups and trays from the nobles.

Sync arrived inside the kitchen and went to the faucet to begin washing the tea cup.

_I wonder, what is the point of me being here?_ thought Sync, _I'm not some pet. I can't think of any real reason for me to be here. My life already ended. My existence never really meant anything in Auldrant. Louise is a student learning magic and despite whatever issues she has, I don't really see her as wanting my assistance beyond menial tasks that she can do herself. Precisely what am I doing here? I have nothing to do. Why was I brought back? I go from having a meaningless existence in one world to a meaningless existence in another world. How pathetic . . ._

Sync finished washing the cup and exited the kitchens. He sighed as he walked towards the exit. _Maybe I'll just try exercising to keep my mind off of these matters for now._

He glanced at the students to see Guiche Chevalier de Gramont receiving the ire of Katie and Montmorency as they each took a turn slapping him for his two timing before they both stormed off in different directions. Sync burst out laughing with the rest of the crowd.

The blushing Guiche glared at the laughing crowd of onlookers. Finally, he set his gaze upon Sync. Sync smirked as he approached and folded his arms.

"You've got some nerve, commoner. To laugh at a noble such as myself," snarled Guiche, he proceeded to grin. "Perhaps a lesson is in order to remind you of your place? How about a duel outside after classes? We will see if you're laughing then!"

"No, I have no reason to, and it isn't my fault you were humiliated." said Sync, he chuckled. Guiche's arms shook and his scowl deepened. "If you want to throw a hissy fit, go throw your tantrum at someone else. It isn't my problem."

"Aha! So you're a coward then," said Guiche, sneering at Sync. "You talked a big game during the summoning but it looks like that's all it was. Too afraid to face me because you know that you'll lose, is that it?"

Sync shrugged. "You can say whatever you want. I have no interest in encouraging your pathetic temper tantrum and I highly doubt that you could survive a fight against me."

Guiche pulled out his wand and pointed his shaking arm at Sync. "Take that back! No commoner talks to Guiche Chevalier de Gramont in such a disrespectful manner! You best learn your place quickly, commoner or you shall suffer more than just punishment from me with that attitude."

"No, it's the truth," snapped Sync, scowling back at Guiche. "If you want to throw a hissy fit, then do it to someone else. I have neither time or the inclination to indulge your stupidity and arrogance."

Sync walked towards the exit. Guiche attempted to run in front of him and point his wand but Sync moved past him. Guiche growled at him until his gaze and hand drifted for another target.

"You then!" snarled Guiche, "Servant girl! Come here and accept your punishment like an appropriate commoner!"

Sync froze and turned to see Siesta nervously balancing the large tray with the finished cafeteria cups, trays, and plates while walking over to Guiche. _He cannot be serious. Is he really going to attack Siesta because he embarrassed himself with his two-timing?_

"P - please my Lord, I . . . I need time to appropriately discard the stack I'm carrying," said Siesta, her body shaking.

"HURRY UP!" snarled Guiche.

Siesta flinched but carefully kept her grip on the large metal tray as she walked to the kitchens and shut the door. She came back out quickly and walked to stand in front of her Guiche with her head bowed. Guiche raised his wand.

"Now, commoner, I shall remind everyone here of your place beneath us born with nobility," said Guiche, "To have that difference mocked is a vile offense, I shall bestow punishment to remind all commoners of their place!"

Guiche summoned a whip. Siesta flinched and then shivered as Guiche raised the whip. Sync closed his fingers into fists and his arms shook. _This has nothing to do with me, this has nothing to do with me, I shouldn't interfere. I should just head out and begin exercising like I intended to. Inequality exists everywhere; both in this world and in Auldrant. It doesn't matter, it shouldn't be upsetting me. I shouldn't care._

Guiche hurled the tail end of the whip at Siesta. Sync froze and frowned as he saw the whip move closer to harming Siesta's defenseless body. _Why do I always feel anger, hate, and humiliation when terrible events happen to me or people that I tell myself that I shouldn't care about? Why did I help Asch at Coral Castle? Why do I feel so indignant when I know that it doesn't matter what I do? Why do these emotions keep influencing me to interfere in what is none of my business? I never needed anyone to get where I was since the day I was born, so why do I feel pity for Siesta? Why can't I just leave it alone? Why . . . do I feel so much pain for strangers that have nothing to do with me? Why do I feel shame whether I choose to act or choose not to act? Maybe . . . it's just proof that I'm always going to be defective._

Sync ran between Siesta and the whip. He took the blow for her and hissed in pain as the whip hit his chest. Guiche, Siesta, and the crowd of students stared with wide eyes.

"H - how did you -?" stuttered Guiche gaping at him. Guiche proceeded to straighten his posture, shut his mouth, and scowl at Sync. "Well, it looks like you decided to accept judgment like a good commoner, after all!"

Guiche brought down the whip once again and hit Sync. Half the crowd of students began howling with laughter or cheer Guiche. He whipped Sync on his cheek, he whipped Sync's chest, he whipped Sync's feet, and his legs. The other half of the crowd were either frowning, looking away, leaving, or turning the shade of blue or green from watching the whipping. Guiche began to laugh with the crowd as Sync stood with a scowl. Sync attempted to remain pensive but hissed when the whip's attack hit a sensitive area that had become sore from the previous strikes. _Fucking brilliant, I get myself into a mess. Why did I decide to do this? Why did I decide to protect her? It shouldn't matter to me. I shouldn't concern myself at all. Why do I feel so indignant? Why do I constantly feel this shame? I don't help her and I feel ashamed of myself; I help her and I still feel ashamed of myself. I hate myself, I hate my stupid choices, I hate my ambivalence to virtually everything, I hate the stupid planet I'm from, I hate this moron in front of me, I hate Siesta for getting into this predicament, I hate myself for hating Siesta because it's not her fault, I hate this stupid noble and commoner bullshit, and I hate myself for feeling shame when I do something and when I don't do something. Damn it, I hate the universe itself! Why was I born? Why do I struggle to survive? Why do I train and fight? Why do I exist? . . . Why do I choose to do anything?_

"So much for being some hot shit assassin, you stupid commoner!" said Guiche as he laughed. Guiche tightened his grip on the whip and continued whipping Sync with renewed vigor. Sync grit his teeth and hissed but didn't respond. "Just look at you! All that talk meant nothing and you finally learn your place in our society! You stupid commoner filth! This is what you deserve for mocking me and humiliating me!"

Sync hissed as Guiche kept whipping him. Some of the bruises began to become small cuts on his body. Sync remained standing and scowling at Guiche. Guiche's scowl deepened and he began hurling the whip even faster.

"Well, aren't you going to beg for mercy?! Or scream and cry?!" shouted Guiche as he continued whipping Sync. "Come on! Beg me for forgiveness for your shameful behavior! Come on! Get on your knees and beg for mercy like a good commoner!"

Sync remained unperturbed. The remaining crowd that hadn't already left or turned away to ignore what was transpiring kept egging Guiche on to keep whipping Sync. Guiche looked around at the approving faces, he sighed in relief, and kept whipping Sync. Sync grunted but staunchly refused to move or to respond to Guiche's taunts. The laughter grew ever louder as some of the students decided to make their own snarky remarks.

_"Look at him! I bet Louise the Zero's familiar is just a fraud! So much for all those boasts during the summoning! He isn't able to do anything to Guiche at all!"_

_"I kinda pity him, but that's what he gets for insulting a noble. We need to make sure commoners are reminded of their place or they'll get uppity like this one."_

_"He seemed really hot before, but now he's really boring. He isn't doing anything! I guess you can't judge a book by its cover."_

_"I bet that shaking after the summoning was just the after-effects of Louise the Zero's summoning. Yeah, actually, come to think of it, that makes way more sense than this commoner being the cause of the shaking. He really had us fooled, I'll give him that. Maybe his profession really has something to do with fraud. The guy clearly can't fight."_

_"Damn, and my opinion of Louise the Zero was really beginning to change. Guess it was all talk, after all. Too bad."_

_"Any bets on when he begins to cry and beg for forgiveness?"_

Sync stood impassively despite the snips of pain slowly worsening, the bruises turning into cuts, and the cuts deepening into gashes. Only a few muted noises of hisses, grunts, and gasps of pain escaped his lips. Guiche's visage reddened and his eyes seemed to burn with an unrestrained ire. _I suppose the fact that I haven't done what he's told me has humiliated him somehow. I thought I was pathetic, but wow. The students at this place are truly vile and stupid, if they really feel entertained watching someone below them in a social hierarchy get tortured._

"Stop it!" shouted a strong feminine voice from the crowd. A red haired woman with dark skin came stomping towards them and scowled at Guiche. "Gramont, that's enough! You've been whipping him for over ten minutes! Don't you think that he's learned his lesson?"

"He has yet to apologize," said Guiche scowling at the newcomer. "Besides, this is none of your business, Kirche Augusta Frederica von Anhalt-Zerbst. This commoner besmirched me and mocked me in front of the other noble students in the cafeteria. His insubordination must be dealt with by my hand!"

Kirche placed her hands on her hips and scowled at Guiche. "Well, I think you've made your point. He's bleeding for Brimer's sake! What else did you plan on doing to him? There's nothing else. Just leave him be, let the maids and Valliere clean him up. Just stop whipping him already! It's obscene!"

Gramont growled and turned his gaze back to Sync. He pointed at Sync. "Listen here, commoner. I'm not done punishing you. You will meet me after class outside so that we may duel and I'll show you the real difference between our social ranks!"

"Fighting on the grounds is strictly forbidden!" snarled Kirche, her visage reddening and her eyes narrowing.

Gramont waved his hand at her. "They're forbidden between two people but not between a mage and familiar. It will be the considered the same as disciplining a pet. I shall demonstrate why a commoner can never hope to beat a mage and remind everyone of their place. Clearly, Valliere has failed in her duties of disciplining her pet and I have taken it upon myself to do it for her."

"Remember commoner," said Guiche, meeting Sync in the eyes and smirking at him. "After class, outside at the Vestry field. Do not forget or I'll give you a far worse punishment, understood?"

Sync scowled and folded his arms but nodded. Guiche nodded back with a smirk, he banished the whip back into non-existence, and walked off. Kirche frowned at Sync before shaking her head and walking off too. Sync breathed in and out to relax his body before turning to see a tear stained Siesta looking down at the floor.

"I'm sorry!" shrieked Siesta, "I . . . I just froze! I was so afraid but I didn't move and you had to take all the lashes. I'm so, so sorry, Sync! This is all my fault."

Sync scowled. Siesta flinched. "How is it your fault? That idiot is the one who tried to hurt you because of his own stupid problems."

"But . . . if, if I hadn't frozen up and just stood there then you wouldn't be bleeding!" said Siesta, gazing up at him with her eyes reddened from crying. "You didn't need to . . . the whipping was meant for me. I just stood and watched and I couldn't muster up the courage to do anything!"

"Look, seriously, it's perfectly alright," said Sync, moving his arms to his sides. "I guess I just couldn't bring myself to watch someone get tortured in front of me for no good reason. You have nothing to apologize for. It was my decision."

Siesta ran towards Sync and embraced him in a hug. She cried into his chest. Sync froze. _Oh shit! What the hell do I do? I've never had a crying woman hug me before . . ._

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry . . ." said Siesta, repeating her apology. Her face buried on the crook of his neck.

Sync flushed and stood motionless as the nobles around him either laughed or left the cafeteria. Sync tried patting Siesta on her head. _Maybe now she'll let go? Aw, damn it . . ._

Siesta pressed her body more tightly on his chest and put her head to the side to cry. Sync looked around to see that most of the students had left. Some of the other maids and the cafeteria crew were coming to pick up the remaining plates. Some glanced their way and gaped or did double-takes. Sync sighed and proceeded to hug Siesta back.

Sync gazed around the room again to see that most of the other servants were ignoring them. They all quickly cleaned the cafeteria and ignored the pair. _Damn it, at this rate, people will think that we're a couple. But . . . this feels really nice._

They stood in the cafeteria, hugging each other in silence, and only receiving occasional glances from the servants. When the servants were finally done, the kitchen staff and the maids walked over to Sync and Siesta. Siesta finally let go, wiping away the last stray tears, before turning to the crowd. Sync saw the rest of the staff bow heavily to him. Sync frowned. _I'm guessing this is some type of expression of thank you? The only time I've ever seen this behavior is training regimes back in Auldrant._

"I speak for the entire staff of the school, and I'm sure for the rest of the commoners, when I say thank you, Lord Sync," said the head chef. Sync raised an eyebrow. _Lord Sync?_ "Thank you so much for protecting Siesta. We're so grateful to you for preventing the noble from exacting his vengeance upon our beloved Siesta. She's a sweet girl and nobody deserves to be treated like that but I'm ashamed to admit that we've all been taught to look the other way when nobles wish to discipline us."

Many of the maids nodded. Some of the maids and kitchen staff walked over. Each of them took turns to hug Siesta. Sync sighed and crossed his arms.

"Would you mind telling me what exactly this noble and commoner business is all about?" said Sync frowning, "I was summoned from an entirely different world so I don't really understand this social or cultural custom."

"Ah, well, you see, dear boy," replied the head chef, "in our world, a noble is someone who has magic. They're granted all the privileges that befits their status for being born special. Children born into noble families who don't have magic usually have to be married off to prevent shame and dishonor on the family name. Meanwhile, we, the commoners, are the servant class. We live solely for the beck and call of the nobles. We don't really have rights beyond what we're instructed as our lifelong duties that the nobles bestow upon us from a young age."

_So, people who follow a life similar to the Score - a life guided by orders given to them at birth, and people . . . who don't live for the sake of being guided at birth? That can't be right. That would mean the Replica's group was right all along. Oh, wait, the family honor nonsense. That must be something like the Score that the nobles follow._ thought Sync, _That seems to be the purpose of their existence according to the explanation. At any rate, I'll still fight that little shit to pay him back for what he did. The diplomatic route already failed and he keeps pestering me to fight so it'll be his own fault when I kill him._

"You should all know," said Sync, "I can do magic. However, because of my professional background, if I had used it then I could have potentially hurt more than just that brat and there was the possibility of bringing the entire room down or at least doing permanent damage. I thought you all should know so that I didn't pretend to be something that I'm not. Under the terms of what you've told me, I would probably count as a noble, if not for the fact I'm a familiar."

Many eyes widened. Some people bowed their heads while others looked away. Siesta bowed deeply and began sputtering apologies. Sync raised his hand.

"Siesta, please stop," said Sync, Siesta raised herself and frowned. The others stood silent. "I don't recognize these social differences and I come from a world that would find such a concept ridiculous. I know magic can help people accomplish far more, but I don't consider you inferior to me or unequal."

The group of servants gazed at him. Some gaped at him and others smiled while shedding tears. Sync walked over to Siesta. "Are you . . . er . . . okay now?"

_This being nice crap is so weird . . ._

Siesta smiled back at him and nodded. She took one of his hand's to hers. Sync stiffened. Siesta whispered. "Um . . . Sync, I remember you mentioned that Lady Valliere made you sleep on hey beside her bed. Well . . . if you like, I . . . I could offer you a place to sleep . . . I know of a room."

"Sure," said Sync smiling. _It feels so strange to smile without needing to mock someone or pretend to appease someone else. I don't even feel like I need to prove myself because of the shame I always feel for being who I am._ "that sounds good."

"We c-can talk about it l-later, okay?" said Siesta. Sync nodded. Siesta seemed to relax. Her hold on Sync's hand tightened. "Alright, so . . . let's get you to the hospital."

"What?" said Sync, his eyes widened. "Don't be ridiculous, I don't need to go to the hospital. I've endured far worse than this in the line of combat."

"Don't be absurd, Lord Sync," said Siesta, she motioned the other maids toward her and they each grabbed hold of Sync's body and began tugging in a specific direction. "We're going to get your wounds looked at. It's the least we can do. I'm sorry, but I cannot take no for an answer with you bleeding like that."

Sync struggled for a few seconds before relenting. _Damn it, just my luck. I'm not going to fight back or I could end-up hurting them. They're all basically civilians and I'm not going to risk accidentally harming them._

The kitchen servants laughed as he was led to the hospital. Sync flushed. _I don't know whether to feel angry or honored._

* * *

"Sync!" shouted a voice.

Sync turned to see a scowling Louise glaring at him. She stopped in front of him and grit her teeth at him.

"What the hell are you playing at?!" said Louise, Sync gazed back at Louise. His expression impassive and undaunted by her fury. "I learned from Zerbst! Zerbst, of all people, that you had been beaten up by Gramont! A large amount of students were there and now I'm the laughingstock of the entire school!"

Sync bit his lip to prevent himself from laughing. "Oh, really? You poor baby, having to endure such horrible pain while I was in the hospital."

"Don't give me that backtalk!" snapped Louise, she pointed an accusing finger at Sync. "This is entirely your fault for misbehaving! Now, you are going to come with me and we're going to go to Guiche to apologize. I'll explain to him that I'll do better in training you like a good familiar and to prove it, you will beg for his forgiveness."

Sync crossed his arms and snorted. Louise growled and took out her wand to point at Sync. "Do you understand me, Sync?!"

"Hard not to with all of your yelling," said Sync, scowling back at Louise. "but for your information, I'm not apologizing to that stuck up, sadistic little brat."

"What? Of course you are!" said Louise, her visage growing redder. "Didn't you just hear me?!"

"No, I refuse to apologize," said Sync, "and since he's so eager to battle me, I'll engage him. He kept pestering me in the cafeteria after he was dumped by two girls that he cheated on. If he's so eager to fight, then I'll give him one and I will kill him."

"W-what?!" said Louise, her eyes widening. She took a step back from Sync. "Y . . .you're joking, right? You can't kill him. He just beat the snot out of you earlier this morning. You can't win."

"Wrong, I didn't engage him in battle because my spells would have destroyed the cafeteria and I have more sense than to use my abilities in an open setting that can potentially endanger civilian lives." snapped Sync, Louise gaped at him. "The setting that he chose will be outside. I am going to murder him in front of the student body. The only reason I took those lashes from the whip was because after I rebuffed his pathetic whining, he immediately took his tantrum out on Siesta. He would have whipped her, if I hadn't ran in front and taken the blows for her."

Louise's eyes looked as if they would pop out of their sockets. She slowly began shaking her head. "Guiche . . . I know he's not the most polite of people . . . but he wouldn't -"

"He did," snapped Sync. Louise flinched and looked down at the floor. "I am not apologizing for what I did because all I did was prevent Siesta from ending up in the hospital with horrible wounds. For that matter, if you really think that I have no chance, then you have no reason to stop this fight."

"Look, maybe you accomplished great things in your world or whatever," said Louise, gazing up at Sync. "but you can't beat Guiche. What happened today in the cafeteria is proof that you're out of your league. I'm just trying to make sure that you don't get killed."

Sync narrowed his eyes further. Louise frowned but didn't look away at Sync's loathsome glare. "If you really believe that, then you're a moron. Don't bother interfering with the match, Louise."

Sync briskly walked past Louise. Louise watched him go and scowled. Once he was out of sight, she looked down at the floor and sighed.

_I'm just trying to do the right thing . . ._ thought Louise, _Maybe I should have phrased it better and tried a different approach. I thought it was just some schoolyard scuffle from the way Zerbst told it. I better go find Siesta and get the full story._

* * *

"Well, it looks like you didn't flee like a coward, commoner," said Guiche, sneering as Sync calmly walked to the center of the empty green field amidst a sea of laughter. "I don't know whether to call you brave or stupid, but no matter. I shall do a kindness for Louise the Zero and help train you to behave like a proper commoner among the noble class."

"Before we begin, I want there to be no misunderstanding. When I fight, I don't play games. I don't believe in friendly competitions when fighting." said Sync, crossing his arms. The students howled with laughter. "This is going to be a fight to the death. No childish take backs, no surrender, and there will be no mercy shown. I'm a trained killer and you better be prepared to either kill me or to die in this battle."

The crowd of students roared with laughter. Some began to insult Sync with taunts of their own. Sync paid them no heed and held Guiche's gaze with a neutral expression. Guiche frowned and looked at the crowd of students laughing at Sync before he relaxed his posture. He gazed back at Sync with a smirk.

"My, my, commoner, you must be incredibly delusional or have an overinflated ego," said Guiche before he laughed along with the crowd. "Very well, very well, I'll indulge your charade. Battle to the death, it is! Prepare to suffer for your japes, commoner!"

Guiche brandished his wand and cast a spell that sent three flower pedals onto the ground. The light flickered on the ground to summon three brass monsters in metallic knight uniforms and large metallic spears. Sync narrowed his eyes and shifted his body to his fighting pose. "Charge, my valkyrie golem warriors! Teach the commoner a lesson that he'll never forget!"

The three metallic mannequins charged at Sync. Sync ran toward the first one and punched it in the sternum. Sync's eyes widened as the metal cracked from the blow and the metallic warrior broke in two before crumbling into non-existence. Sync grinned. The crowd of students stopped laughing and stared in stunned silence. One of the students shouted: _"L - lucky shot, commoner!"_

Sync ran towards the next metallic golem. The metallic monster hefted it's spear to impale Sync, Sync moved his body into a crouching position with his left foot forward. He launched his body at the valkyrie and slammed both his hands to deliver a Dragon Shot on the chest plate of the monster. The valkyrie golem careened into the area and broke apart into chunks of metal before it hit the ground far behind Guiche and the onlookers. Some turned to see the mannequin's trajectory while others did a double-take. Guiche stared at Sync wide-eyed as Sync delivered a spin kick to the last valkyrie and split it in two pieces before it dissipated into nothingness.

_These summoned monsters are completely pathetic,_ thought Sync, _They're weaker than a typical rhinossus. A ligar could easily trounce these pathetic things in three hits or less._

"If that's the best you got, then this battle is over," said Sync, he laughed at Guiche. Guiche flinched and stared at the surprised faces of his fellow classmates. He turned back to Sync and glared. "Come on, at least give me a challenge."

Guiche's cheeks reddened and his eyes were wide but scowling. The spectators remained silent apart from a scant few people cheering for Guiche to get serious and teach the commoner a lesson. Sync walked towards Guiche in a leisurely pace. Guiche raised his rose wand and released four more petals. The petals flashed upon hitting the ground and four more valkyrie golems stood between the two combatants.

The four valkyries got in a battle position in a straight line. All four valkyries charged at Sync at the same time and ran in a line as Guiche slowly began backing away. Sync scowled, he placed an arm near his ribs, and began to cast a spell.

"O roar of the earth," chanted Sync, the majority of the crowd audibly gasped in surprise. Some gaped, others eyes widened when turning to Sync, and still others stood frozen. "bring forth the fangs of the mighty dragon . . ."

Sync raised his arm. "Ground dasher!"

A row of sharp mounds of earth in the shape of the back of a large dragon jutted out of the ground and pierced through the metallic golems. The golems instantly dissipated into non-existence upon being ruptured by Sync's spell. The crowd and Guiche screamed in surprise and whispers erupted among the crowd. Guiche fell on his ass and stared aghast as Sync moved towards him.

_"He's a noble?!", "That spell . . . I've never seen anything so powerful!", "W-what is he?! He said he's an assassin back when he was summoned, right? Oh shit . . .", "He's not really going to kill Guiche, right? Oh Brimer, this is bad!"_

"I - I give! I surrender!" said Guiche, his eyes widening as Sync grabbed his shirt collar and forcefully pulled his upper body a few feet off the ground. "P - please! Have mercy! You win! I forfeit! You're clearly the better mage! I surrender! Please!"

"No, I told you before, I don't play around. I fight until the other person is dead." said Sync, raising his fist. Guiche's eyes widened like saucers and he began to pee his pants. The crowd stood unmoving and watched. Many were unable to comprehend the events quickly unfolding before them. "I made myself perfectly clear, didn't I? You agreed to a fight to the death. Now, you die."

Guiche shook his head and began openly crying. "P - please! Please! I - I'll give you anything! Gold, an estate, perhaps some fine jewelry! My family will pay, I'm good on the money! I promise I won't cheat you! I - I'll keep my word! Please!"

"I already said no, my answer remains final." said Sync, he glared down at Guiche as he raised his free arm. "In my world, when I fight, I fight to the death. Unless I'm the one fleeing for my life, I make no exceptions. Battles in my world are all about life and death struggles."

"Please stop!" shrieked Guiche, snot coming out of his nose and his tears leaking faster. He tried struggling out of Sync's grip. The crowd still watched in shock and many remained rooted on the spot due to fear. "This is entirely senseless! There's no point! Why are you trying to kill me?! I'm sorry! I'm sorry for angering you! Please! Please, don't kill me! I'll do anything, please stop it!"

Sync remained impassive. "It's not about having good sense. This is just the way of the world that I came from. This is what it means to live and die fighting to survive. To have it otherwise is an insult to all who've died fighting for their own survival. I made it clear that this was such a battle so you only have yourself to blame. You were stupid."

"Yes, yes, I am stupid!" shouted Guiche, his voice becoming hoarse. "Please don't kill me! I'm begging you, please! I'm sorry for what I did!"

"Sync, stop it right now!" shouted the voice of Louise, Sync turned his gaze to see Louise with her knees bent and with her hands on her knees. She was breathing heavily. "I came as quickly as I could after I heard that earth-shaking spell! Sync, what do you think you're doing?! Let him go! You've already proven your point!"

"No, I told you before and he agreed before our battle," said Sync gazing at Louise with the scathing visage. Louise shivered but tried to keep her scowl. "In my world, people fight to survive. Even small children are forced to fight and kill other people just to eat and live on for the next day. Countless millions live as mercenaries to fight, steal, kill, and survive only to do the same the next day so that they have food to feed themselves, warm clothes to sleep in, and scrounge enough money to buy medicine when they get sick. They live on with diseases from poisons, appendages severed from war, and some even die of exhaustion or starvation. That's the harsh reality of the world that I grew up in. When you challenge someone to a battle, it is kill or be killed."

"Well, this isn't your world!" snapped Louise, "there will be severe consequences for killing him! I could get in trouble, the school could get in trouble, and well . . . it's just _wrong_ , Sync! You can't just kill people as you please!"

"Why the hell did I live through all of that shit back in my world then?" said Sync. Louise stared in surprise and was taken aback by Sync's words. "I didn't struggle after being thrown in a fucking volcano just to let some snotty noble moron get a pass. I told him in no uncertain terms what he was getting himself into. He has only himself to blame."

Louise ran up to Sync and grabbed the arm holding Guiche's shirt. She tried pulling Sync's arm free. Sync snarled and began pushing Louise away by roughly bumping his shoulder. "Sync, you can't do this! It isn't right! It's morally wrong! How do you not understand this?!"

Tears began streaking down Louise's cheeks as she tried in vain to break Sync's hold. Sync kept jamming his shoulder into her thin body while Louise tried to hold on. A tearing sound could be heard as Guiche's shirt began to rip as he erratically tried to get away from Sync. The onlookers watched and didn't move to help either Louise or Guiche.

"What about when he tried to whip Siesta?!" shouted Sync, Louise tried to pry Sync's hand off of Guiche's shirt. The shirt ripped even further but Sync still held Guiche despite his rabid attempts to flee. "I guess it's just fine when a commoner gets assaulted, but a noble? Well then, there's legal consequences, is that it?!"

"That's completely different!" shouted back Louise. Sync gazed at her in utter revulsion. "I'm not saying it wasn't wrong! I'm saying that killing someone and assaulting people are two different things! You can't just respond to violence with worse forms of violence, Sync!"

"I can and I will! It's the only way to teach these maggots a lesson!" shrieked Sync, pushing her with his shoulder. Louise hissed and tried to keep her feet study as Sync moved a step back to slam her with his shoulder. "I'm going to murder him and there is nothing that you can do about it! He made his choice and he'll endure the consequences!"

"Sync, this is the wrong way to teach anyone about anything!" shouted Louise, she heard the shirt tear again. "You're being completely psychopathic! Stop it! Just stop it! This is absolutely unforgivable, disgusting, reprehensible behavior! I order you as your master to stop it! Siesta already told me everything! I'm sorry for getting angry at you! I promise to listen to you from now on and treat you with more respect! You don't have to do this!"

"If you're worried about the rules, then don't be!" said Sync, glaring at her. "There are no rules against it because I'm a familiar so you can't get in trouble because of a loophole!"

"Sync, that is _not_ the fucking point!" said Louise, her visage turning red faced and her voice becoming hoarse from her shouting. "Do you really not get why this is wrong?! Are you damn stupid or what?! I order you to stop it at once! Stop trying to kill someone!"

_I can't believe this fucking idiot!_ thought Louise, _I can't believe I have to say that! How does he not understand that this is completely wrong?! What kind of fucked up world did this guy come from?!_

The dress shirt completely tore apart. Guiche turned around and sprinted away. Sync snarled, he slammed his elbow on Louise's shoulder, and Louise fell to the grown. Louise cried out in pain as Sync ran toward Guiche and pulled him back by his blond hair. Guiche shrieked and screamed aloud. Sync used his other hand to grab Guiche by the front of his throat. Sync turned Guiche over in one smooth motion and hoisted him in the air. Sync grinned at Guiche's choked cries. Sync gazed in satisfaction as tears and snot ran down Guiche's fearful visage.

Louise looked up from where she sat. "Sync, don't! Please, please stop it already! You're scaring everyone! You're scaring me!"

Louise looked around as her heart was beating incredibly fast and her cheeks were flushed from yelling. She spotted Siesta walking towards the commotion.

"Siesta! Siesta, please do something! Stop Sync! He's serious about killing Guiche!" shouted Louise as tears fell down her cheeks, Siesta glanced at Louise with wide eyes before turning to gaze at Sync holding Guiche in a chokehold while hoisting him in the air. "Please! Siesta, tell him that he doesn't have to do this! Tell him the point has already been made! Guiche's learned his lesson! You don't want this to happen either, right?!"

Siesta hesitated. The crowd was still looking at Sync. Sync glanced back to Siesta and stood in silence.

_Good! It looks like he'll listen to her!_ thought Louise, her body finally relaxing as she turned to gaze at Siesta. _We can put this madness behind us and I can have a serious talk with Sync. Maybe I'll get Siesta to help, maybe he'll listen to her_.

"Siesta! Please, tell him to stop!" shouted Louise, "You don't want him to kill Guiche, right?! He's a noble! Think of what will happen! Tell him it's wrong to just murder anyone that he likes!"

Siesta froze and glanced back at Louise with an odd expression. Siesta turned back to Sync and frowned. Silence descended on the group as Sync just stared at Siesta and Siesta remained silent. No one in the crowd made an attempt to help Guiche despite Guiche's desperate choked squeaks. Many gazed at Sync in fear.

Siesta licked her lips before shrugging her shoulders. "I don't know much about battles or duels, but as far as I understand, I don't know of any rules against a familiar fighting a noble. I don't know of any consequences for such an affair either."

Louise gaped at Siesta. _She didn't . . . she couldn't . . . not sweet, kind Siesta. Why would she? How could she?! Doesn't she under -_

Louise's thoughts stopped as the conclusion came to her. She turned her gaze to see a grinning Sync.

"Sync, no - !"

Sync punched Guiche in the face, Guiche's head lurched back and blood ran down his face, and pieces of his teeth fell to the ground. Louise and the crowd watched in morbid fascination as Guiche's nose was visibly smashed and broken in several pieces. Sync reared his fist back and smashed his fist into Guiche's face a second time. Guiche's head lurched back even further and Louise heard a loud snap as Guiche's head was bent all the way to his back before lurching upward. Sync dropped Guiche's body on the grass and Louise quickly got to her feet to run towards it.

Louise gasped and held a hand in front of her mouth as she saw Guiche's disfigured skull with the clear imprints of Sync's fist on the remains of his facial bones. She turned back to see Sync rest his hands behind his back and scowl at the crowd. The front of the crowd took a visible step back. Both boys and girls cried upon witnessing such brutality, some of the crowd vomited, others dry heaved, and some fled the scene.

"Let this be a lesson," said Sync, his expression neutral as he gazed at the students. "Any noble who mistreats the commoners shall receive the same treatment as him."

Sync pointed to Guiche's body. Louise's mouth rapidly moved up and down as she felt the need to say something but was too terrified to speak. Sync narrowed his eyes at the crowd. Some looked away and others flinched when Sync met their eyes.

"Let that pathetic moron serve as a reminder to you all of what I am capable of. If you continue to mistreat the commoners, then I'll kill you. Simple as that. Don't think your professors will make you safe from me."

Sync stalked off. Louise glanced at Siesta and could swear that she saw Siesta smile for a brief moment when Siesta gazed at Sync's back. Siesta ran towards where Sync had left. Louise returned her gaze to the corpse by her feet.

Guiche Chevalier de Gramont was dead.


	2. Ambivalence II

"This is preposterous!" snarled the government liaison, he scowled at the Headmaster. "You cannot expect for there to be no repercussions for the outright murder that occurred here! The boy was an upstanding noble!"

"It certainly is no light matter," said Osmond, stroking his beard. "but we have followed the government's strict interpretation of the school rules. Under the laws governing school institutions, there is absolutely no precedent set for a familiar being challenged to a duel and murdering their opponent. The summoning of a human was unprecedented, let alone from an entirely different world. It broke all of the theoretical fundamentals of what we imagined possible with magic. But the rules are clear and my hands are tied."

"You cannot be serious! Are you just going to allow this man - admittedly a mage - to just murder any of your students as he pleases?!" said the government liaison, slamming his fist onto Osmond's desk. Osmond sighed heavily. "The nobles of Tristain will not stand for it! You'll lose everything! People will pull out their children in droves from this school!"

Osmond shook his head. "Unlikely, with the war still going on. Despite security measures, there is still the distinct possibility that rebel groups and terrorists will make a move and attack one of the civilian centers."

"Oh please! The war is almost set to a close!" said the government liaison, "The princess of Tristain is already taking steps to celebrate her victory. She will announce herself as Empress of Halkeginia. The last of the rebels are all but gone. We even planned a special event during the tournament for this very school but perhaps we shall have a change of plans!"

"If I may?" said the legal scholar, moving to stand next to the government liaison, "I've conducted a thorough investigation of the relevant legal case files and the current laws related to familiars, nobles, and duels. Despite the first time this situation has occurred, there is a way to resolve matters."

"Yes, good," said the government liaison, nodding to the legal scholar. "let us have this matter settled once and for all. Teach some sense to this old fool."

"Despite outward appearances, it would seem that we are at a critical impasse. The most critical elements are the duel and the fact a familiar killed a student." said the legal scholar turning to gaze at the Headmaster. "According to the witnesses, the young man clearly said it was a duel. I wish not to speak ill of the dead, but he was flaunting the rules and it was his motives that forced us into this conundrum. While there are precedents if a familiar acts rambunctiously and kills a student and such behavior has severe consequences . . ."

The government liaison smirked. Osmond stroked his beard and looked intrigued by the legal scholar's explanation.

"That cannot be considered the case in this situation. The familiar, who is a human mage, didn't act rambunctiously and made the stipulation that the loser must die. This was also made clear by the numerous eye witness accounts." said the legal scholar, the other two frowned but remained silent. "Which means . . . despite the ban on duels in schools, which only applies to students, the fact the young man, de Gramont, challenged a human familiar to a duel meant that . . . the duel became legally recognized. The boy may have meant it as a jest, but . . . the challenged party is a noble like us and therefore noble legal jurisdiction applies. It became the equivalent of de Gramont challenging me or my fellow here to a duel, we aren't bound by the school rules and we can choose to accept the offer when challenged."

"The green haired familiar murdered that innocent boy!" snarled the government liaison rounding on the legal scholar, "the boy begged for his life for a numerous amount of times and was murdered in cold blood for all of the students to see! Some will be scarred for the rest of their lives!"

The legal scholar shook his head. "Once de Gramont uttered that it was a duel and the stipulation made by the human familiar was accepted, it became a legally binding duel. Under the legal jurisdictions and in concurrence with all established precedents, the human familiar and de Gramont had a legally recognized duel."

"You would let a murderer go free?!" said the government liaison, his eyes wide. "You will not see justice for the murdered boy and his family?!"

"Should the human familiar act violently and attack or murder other students then he will be punished in accordance with the laws in the same manner as any noble. It would be unwise to allow the familiar's master sole discretion when it is clear that his magic is not of our world and we cannot expect a student to control a fully fledged human mage with mysterious powers and their own agenda. He is clearly more powerful than a student mage. That would be asking for trouble." said the legal scholar, he looked at the government liaison with a stern expression. "But it is entirely improper to call what happened a violent impulse or random act of murder by the human familiar. The deceased boy repeatedly accosted him and demanded the duel to begin with. A duel is a legally recognized battle between mages and therefore, under the rule of law, all of the events that transpired between the two during the duel and the death of the boy are recognized under the jurisdiction of dueling laws. Unfortunately, duels can and do end in death. The stipulation of the challenged party was the duel end in death and the familiar followed through with the stipulation that was agreed upon by the young de Gramont. As such, only two critical matters are left unchecked."

The legal scholar turned to Sync, who sat in the corner of the room. Sync propped his elbow on an armchair and a hand on his chin. He hadn't uttered a word upon being told to come to the Headmaster's office to rectify the legal dispute that had followed.

"Lord Sync, you have the legal right to any boon from the de Gramont family for having won the duel between you and their fourth child," said the legal scholar, the government liaison's eyes looked as if they would pop out of his sockets as he turned to the legal scholar and Sync. "Furthermore, you have the right to a boon from the school to recompose what you endured at the hands of the wayward student that harmed you as a result of the school's negligence."

Osmond bowed his head to Sync. The government liaison's face reddened. "Have you gone completely mad?! What is this nonsense?! How can you - !"

The legal scholar scowled at the government liaison. The government liaison shot a glare at Sync before looking away.

"What does a boon entail?" asked Sync, furrowing his brows. "What exactly are the specifics of what I can ask for?"

"You could ask for a certain amount of gold, land, a commoner as a servant, a family heirloom of the de Gramont House, or perhaps a wand," said the legal scholar. Sync remained silent. The legal scholar frowned and then sighed. "perhaps, the de Gramont estate?"

"Okay, what can I not ask for?" said Sync. _What would I even want?_

"Whatever is not in the power of the de Gramont family to give," said the legal scholar, "but whatever is within the jurisdiction and power of the de Gramont family to give, you may take by right of conquest and it must be in accordance with the specifics of what you say."

Sync frowned. "Wait a minute . . . are you saying that there is no limit for what I cannot demand from the de Gramont family?"

"No, I am saying that . . . you can ask for anything that is within the power of the de Gramont family to give," said the legal scholar, Sync's lips twitched upward. "and you will have to be specific on what you want, or you may not receive your intended reward based upon the wording that you utilize."

Sync tapped his chin and he smirked. "Alright then, I want the de Gramont family estate, I want their vault, I want all of their physical wealth including gold, jewelry, coin money, any forms of paper money that exist in this world, I want all their land properties, I want all their servants, I want full control of all of their business arrangements and business assets, I want their legal titles so that I become recognized in the same legal capacity as they were before I took all of their assets, and I want their accomplishments to be removed from whatever the new name of my House will be called or stricken from the record entirely. Of course, this means I also want the house or mansion that they live in with the estate too."

_Glad I learned legal interpretations in Daath when making my way up to eventually become a God General,_ thought Sync grinning, _let's test how far this "boon" goes. I suspect that it'll just piss these men off and they'll ask for something more reasonable. They can't be so stupid as to give me everything and I've always had to work for everything that I achieved. I can't really think of anything reasonable to ask for yet. I wonder if the real boon is somehow time-sensitive._

The three gazed at Sync aghast. The government liaison barred his teeth at Sync.

"Done, you shall receive all of their holdings, monies, land, servants, jewelry, and you may enter your new estate at any time." said the legal scholar, taking out a scroll and a wand from his pocket. He waved it and a white light enveloped the scroll and Sync's familiar marking flashed too. "It is done, the de Gramont family is henceforth removed from their original standing and you are now Count of the West of Tristain. The servants, estate, vault, contents of the vault, and everything but their family armory is now legally and magically bound to you, Count Sync. If you wish, you may remove the de Gramont name with your own last name."

Sync's eyes widened and he gaped at the other three people in the Headmaster's office. _Wow, so this world is, in fact, incredibly stupid._

"You have just made an entire family loyal to the country of Tristain and the princess destitute!" shouted the government liaison, scowling down at Sync. "How could you do such a thing?! Was it not enough that you killed their youngest child?!"

Sync laughed. The government liaison's arms shook and his gaze held utter contempt for Sync. Sync stopped laughing and smirked at the liaison. "It isn't my fault that they raised a vicious bastard who was stupid enough to initiate the duel. It's their own fault for raising a moron."

The legal scholar cleared his throat. Sync gazed towards him.

"I . . . don't have a last name." said Sync, he frowned, removed his chin from his hand, and folded both of his arms. "So . . . to be frank, I have no idea what I should put as a surname."

The government liaison sniffed. "Well then, I shall take this matter to the princess. She shall see sense to this madness and she'll give you a surname and a suitable punishment, you foreign cur."

Sync shrugged his shoulders. The legal scholar sighed and shook his head. He straightened his posture and met Sync's eyes.

"Well, for the other matter, what boon would you like from the school to recompense what you've endured?" said the legal scholar, he frowned. "Also, please note that, unlike with the boon taken from the de Gramont family, taking a boon from the school follows a stricter guideline because it is the property of the royal family and thus government property. Thereby, we follow government protocol to set the reasonable boundaries of what you can ask. You could ask for an official apology by the school, if there had been a negligent professor then you could have demanded they be sacked and replaced, you could ask for one of the noble members of the staff to retire, or you can take one of the commoner staff under your legal jurisdiction and own them as your property. Normally, only government officials are allowed such a privilege unless, like the maids, they're replaceable with any other commoner woman being hired as a maid."

Sync moved one hand up to his face and drummed his fingers on his cheek. Sync furrowed his eyes and frowned. _It would be wrong to just take Siesta as my property . . . but the morals that I live by aren't the same as this world. I can't be sure that Siesta won't get into future trouble by getting injured or worse by any of the noble students or teachers despite what I told them. In fact, from a purely objective analysis, it's probably best to nip this in the bud and secure Siesta's protection regardless of my world's moral code of right and wrong. A moral code that I never really lived by since I was the Order of Lorelei's hired killer. I need to adapt to the new world and how they treat commoners is better than how my world treated Replicas like me. I'm not going to be a prejudicial bigot, but if I can use this system to my advantage to protect Siesta then I should._

"I want the maid Siesta as my boon. Have her placed under my jurisdiction and . . ." Sync hesitated. _This sounds so disgusting and deplorable to say . . ._ "have Siesta recognized as my property."

The government liaison glared and the legal scholar nodded as he put back the scroll and took out a government handbook. He raised his wand and the government handbook flashed. Sync's markings flashed once again and then returned to normal.

"It is done," said the legal scholar, "if you wish, she may still be able to carry out her duties as a servant of the school but legally she is your property."

Sync nodded in response and remained silent. The government liaison continued to glare at Sync before he huffed and left the room. The legal scholar bid farewell before following in his wake.

"So, young man," said Osmond, turning his attention to Sync, "it would appear that you've done quite well for yourself in just a single day."

Sync narrowed his eyes. "What of it?"

"I heard about your declaration to the student body that witnessed the incident. I must remind you that I shall have you arrested should you make good on your threat to the student body." said Osmond narrowing his eyes at Sync. "However, I cannot legally do anything should you harm them during duels. But I warn you, if you should use that loophole to go around murdering my students, then I will act regardless of the legal limits. You had better _not_ kill anyone else in this school who is under my care. Dueling for physical possessions or titles shall be permitted but there is to be no further incidents ending in death. Do I make myself clear?"

Sync opened his mouth and then shut it. He was quiet for a few seconds before he nodded. "That is reasonable. For what it's worth, I apologize for putting you in a hard position . . . but I will not tolerate the torture of the commoners."

Osmond narrowed his eyes and then closed them to sigh. He reopened his eyes and waved his free hand in a shooing motion.

"Please, just get out of my office."

* * *

The class listened to the instructor as she lectured them on the different scales of magic and their different elements.

"Now class, I need someone to demonstrate fire magic," the professor looked around and spotted Louise, "Ah, Ms. Valliere, perhaps you will be suited for this task, please come down."

Louise got up from her seat and walked down the steps. She briefly gazed around the room before continuing her walk down the steps. Her classmates remained silent and some avoided her gaze when she tried to make eye contact. Louise felt her heart soar and her lips twitched upward because nobody had shouted her reviled nickname when she got up from her seat. Yet, Louise felt a stabbing sensation in her heart and felt her face tightening as the sensation of tears threatening to spill overwhelmed her when she looked at her classmates and they avoided looking at her. After Sync's murder of Guiche, none of her classmates would speak to her.

_I don't understand my feelings anymore. How can I feel such joy and such pain at the same time? I want to cry and I also want to laugh. I don't know if I'm just going to fall into a ball and cry my eyes out or smile and laugh at all the stupid people who gave me that damn nickname. I feel like doing both . . . I feel like I'm going crazy. I don't know what I want. I feel like I'm an idiot and I also feel like I've succeeded somehow in proving my worth._ thought Louise, she looked pointedly at the ground as she resumed walking down the steps. _People are ignoring me. Sometimes I think about what would happen if I just punched someone in the face, just for a reaction. Or maybe just did something totally crazy like strip and dance naked. But I'd never do that . . . but this isolation is really becoming too much. Nobody makes fun of me anymore . . . but nobody talks to me anymore. They probably think I'll send Sync to murder them. A part of me wishes that my life would go back to how it was before Sync, and another part of me realizes how absurd that is because of how awful I felt when they kept belittling me for every little thing I did wrong. I hated that life . . . I know this is an improvement but . . . I'm so confused! What do I want? I don't know anymore. This is all Sync's fault! I tried to reason with him and now . . . everything has changed. I feel so empty. I just don't know how to feel anymore with all these thoughts and feelings twisting me up inside; I have no one to talk to! Who can I talk to about all of this? I have no one . . . I feel like I want to crawl in a hole and it hurts so much._

Louise followed the professor's instructions and the area she cast the spell predictably exploded. Grey smoke flooded the entire room and Louise could hear many students coughing. One of the students used a wind spell to dispel the smoke. Louise flushed and looked at the students. She felt a stabbing sensation in her heart as she witnessed the students remain quiet apart from a few coughs from the smoke. People avoided her gaze and the room remained as silent as a crypt. Unlike two days ago, before Sync was summoned, nobody laughed at Louise but her classmates seemed to be taking great pains to avoid her entirely.

"Well, at least the students have become more respectful," said the professor, she grinned at Louise. Louise gazed down at the floor and scowled. "Well, that's about it for today's class."

Louise ran up the steps and got her school supplies as the students got up from their seats and began to leave the classroom. Louise looked at the multitude of faces before spotting two people. She hurried down the steps and made a beeline in the direction of Kirche and Tabitha.

"Hey, Tabitha!" said Louise, raising one of her hands and waving it. _Tabitha doesn't usually follow the trends of most of the other students. It's definitely worth a shot._ "Zerbst! I mean . . . er . . . Kirche!"

_Wow, that felt weird to say,_ thought Louise, _Please, please turn this way! Maybe I could ask them to have lunch with me or maybe we could study together?_

Tabitha turned and saw Louise's smiling face. Louise waved and straightened her posture. Tabitha's eyes widened as she stared at Louise with a dumbfounded expression. Their eyes met. Tabitha abruptly turned around and grabbed Kirche's arm before tugging her away. Louise lowered her arm and saw Kirche turn to her Tabitha with her eyes furrowed. Kirche glanced behind her to see Louise's smiling face. Kirche's mouth hung open before she turned her head back and ran alongside Tabitha. The two were out of Louise's sight within seconds.

Louise felt her heart shatter as she frowned and looked at the floor. For a moment, she stood dazed as her chest felt heavy as if sharp needles were piercing her lungs. She took a few deep breathes to calm herself and stop her chest from feeling painful. A few stray tears fell down her cheeks as she walked back in the direction of her room. _I just can't go to the rest of the day's classes. I don't want anyone to see me in tears. I'll call in sick for the day. I'm so tired of all this! This is all so frustrating and humiliating! I can't stand much more, I feel so tired all the time and no one talks to me . . ._

Louise entered her dorm room and threw her belongings on her bed before shutting the door. She looked up to see Sync sitting on the open windowsill and gazing outside.

"What are you doing?" snapped Louise, scowling at him and folding her arms. Sync turned to her direction. "What happened in the Headmaster's office? What trouble am I in?"

"You're not in any trouble. At least, neither of us is in any legal trouble at the moment. It seems that, because the brat called it a duel and I stipulated for it to be a death match, I can't be held liable for his death. Apparently, it's the equivalent of him walking up to any random mage that isn't part of the school and challenging them to a duel. The legal scholar asked me what I wanted for a boon . . . and . . ." Sync paused his speech and held up his hand to show Louise the ring of House de Gramont on his finger. Louise's eyes widened and she gaped at Sync. Sync continued. "Thanks to my understanding of legal interpretations of the rule of law, I was able to take everything from the fool's family. Their estate, vault, wealth, servants, and legal titles are all mine now. The Headmaster's assistant handed me the ring before I left. I have yet to set up a surname because I never had one growing up back in my old world. The government liaison is forming a petition and official complaint to the princess of Tristain so we may not be out of any legal penalties yet, but so far it seems to be going really well."

Sync smirked. Louise shut her mouth and glared at Sync. _How can such a horrible resolution be possible?! Oh Brimir, I hope Henrietta doesn't also begin to ignore or despise me when she finds out that it was my familiar . . ._

"Well, congratulations on your reward for murdering my fellow classmate," said Louise, she shook her head. "I hope you're proud of yourself. You've made my life a complete wreck because of your actions. Now, nobody talks to me and they're all too afraid to even look at me because they probably think I'll send you to hurt them!"

"So what?" snapped Sync, scowling back at Louise. "I thought you wanted your life to change and to be respected by your classmates? Now they won't dare to insult you because you summoned a strong familiar. Shouldn't you be proud of yourself?"

"This isn't what I wanted at all!" shrieked Louise, her arms moved to her sides and her hands formed into fists. Her cheeks tinged red and she clenched her teeth. Her body shook and she felt the urge to run over to the over side of her room to push Sync out the window. "I wanted to make my family proud by becoming an accomplished and respected mage! I wanted people to like me for who I am! I wanted to make new friends who would study with me, come to my birthday parties, and hang out with me just to talk! I wanted to be accepted and admired by my fellow classmates! I didn't want people to be so afraid of me that they refuse to look at me! I didn't want to be partly responsible for another student's death! I wanted people to like me and you completely ruined everything! You . . . you . . . you've ruined my life! I'll never get the chance to prove myself and make friends; I might as well just drop out because of how painful it's already become for me!"

There was a momentary pause as Louise glared at Sync while she stood shaking. Sync stopped glaring and gazed at her with a solemn expression for several seconds. Sync proceeded to burst out laughing and held his stomach as he laid his back on the side of the windowsill. He drew his head back and continued to laugh. Louise's cheeks reddened and she nearly shed tears as she stomped towards the open window. Sync continued to laugh as Louise stood a few feet from him.

_What is the matter with this guy? Who are you really Sync and just what are you capable of?_ thought Louise, she felt a shudder. _I don't know anything about you, do I? You can continue to act so normal and laugh at my face after murdering someone in cold blood. It's absolutely revolting and I don't know whether I should be terrified or angry. I'm so mad but I don't know what you'll do to me, especially if you realize that I'm deeply afraid of what you might do to me. I'm trying to be brave, but I get the feeling that you can already see right through me._

Sync finished laughing and smirked at her. Louise took a deep breath and met Sync's eyes.

"You sound completely pathetic," said Sync, Louise's eyebrows narrowed further as she gave Sync a visage of contempt. "Those idiots were mocking you before I was ever summoned. Judging from the terrible nickname and constant insults that you endured, I find it doubtful that your classmates would ever have been what you wanted them to be. You should be happy that I came into the picture and caused them to fear you."

"Happy?! Are you insane?!" said Louise, her shoulders shook. "I had a chance of impressing them and earning their respect before you showed up and killed someone!"

"A chance of earning their respect? Are you stupid?" said Sync, his lips twitched upward. Louise growled and she stomped a foot on the floor. "I find such a notion to be absurd. They were constantly disparaging you and didn't put any value towards your feelings. Do you really think they would care enough to change their views of you when they never bothered to get to know you? Face reality, Louise, seeking the approval of people who will incessantly demean you will only cause you to hate yourself. They only perceived you as a dreck; they were capable and comfortable with devaluing you as such. For the most part, people who treat you like rubbish will continue to treat you horribly, even after they've apologized and sworn that they will never treat you like rubbish again. People fall back into their stupid habits. If you really believed that those people would ever treat you nicely, then you're a fool."

Louise shook her head and walked backwards until she fell on her butt. She buried her face in her hands and wept. Her body shuddered as she cried. Sync watched for a moment and then turned his head to look outside the window. He ignored her wailing and his posture stiffened while sitting on the windowsill. Sync didn't say a word or try to comfort Louise as she cried on the floor.

_I'm out of my loop,_ thought Sync, _What am I doing here anymore? If all I do is cause her problems then I should just leave. I doubt I was ever meant to come to this world in the first place. I could easily transfer the custody of Siesta to Louise and just end my life. Louise seems to concern herself with Siesta's wellbeing enough._

Sync let out an aggravated sigh. "Louise, why am I here?"

Louise got up from the floor and wiped away her remaining tears. Sync turned to see her reddened and puffy eyes. Louise glared at Sync and blushed. _I can't believe I let myself cry in front of this murderous jerk._

"What are you talking about?" said Louise, she sighed. "You're here because I summoned you."

"That's not what I meant," said Sync folding his arms, "I mean I have no reason to be here and evidently, I'm just being a detriment to your life. Why should I remain here?"

"So, you want to leave?" said Louise, "Fine then, just go and live in your new castle."

"You idiot, you're still not understanding me," said Sync glaring at her. Louise bristled at his words. "I mean that there is no purpose for me here. I don't belong in this world. You summoned me to prove that you're a worthy mage so that others would stop mocking you, right? Well, congratulations, you've proven that you're a real mage. Your purpose for me has been fulfilled."

"So then . . . you want me to send you back to your home world?" said Louise, she sighed and frowned. "I guess I could try . . . it could take some time though. Maybe even years."

Sync shook his head. "I was already dead in the world I came from. I don't think I should have been brought back to begin with. If you really feel that I'm a mistake and you want me gone then just kill me. Hopefully, I get sent back to where consciousness goes in my world."

Louise gasped and she took a step back. She flinched at Sync's calm visage. "I - I can't do that! Are you kidding me?! I'm not going to murder you! How can you ask me to do that?!"

"Louise, there is no point in me being here. I have nothing to do and no reason to be here. I'm not native to this planet. Besides, as your familiar, you can kill me without facing any legal repercussions." said Sync, "It isn't even murder, it's sending me back to where I came from. I was already dead in my home world so just think of it as returning a spirit back to the grave, if that helps."

"How can you seriously be asking this?! Aren't you terrified of dying? What you're asking isn't sane or rational at all!" said Louise, shaking her head as she gazed at Sync with a dumbfounded expression. "Please, stop talking like this! It's becoming too much for me to handle!"

Sync shrugged. "I'm not terrified of death. I'm empty, I've always been empty since the day I was born. I never belonged in the world I came from and I obviously don't belong here either. I don't know why I was given a second life but clearly it was by accident or it was a quirk of fate. I hate my life; I hate that I was born. Every waking moment of my life, I've always felt shame for being who and what I am. Even now, I still feel ashamed of myself. It influences everything that I do and it's defined my life since my birth. Back in the world I came from, I was alive just for revenge against the being responsible for my birth. What kept me alive and going was hate. I don't have a reason to be here. I have no purpose in this second chance at life. So please . . . kill me and end my suffering."

Louise swallowed as she remained quiet and contemplated what Sync said. _How do I get him to stop acting like this? Is it even possible to change his mind? I can't believe I'm seriously considering ending his life . . . but do I have a right to force my opinion on the matter? Damn it, my life has become such a confusing mess since Sync entered it. I don't know what to do . . ._

"You . . . live for me . . ." said Louise barely above a whisper. Sync raised an eyebrow. Louise cleared her throat and straightened her posture. She gazed towards Sync as eye level. "You live to help me. As my familiar, you shall assist me in reaching my goal of becoming a powerful mage so that I earn the respect of my family and I become respected throughout Tristain as a powerful mage."

"Oh really? And what qualifies as becoming a powerful mage? How precisely are we going to determine when such a vague goal is accomplished to the satisfaction of both of us and your family?" said Sync, shaking his head. "What exactly are your goals? Do you even have goals that you've set for yourself? Have you decided upon the milestones or quarterly goals that you need to accomplish so that you know that you're reaching your chief goal? Have you made any reasonable and realistic plans on how to accomplish your goal?"

"I . . . I don't know!" shouted Louise throwing her arms in the air. Her cheeks flushed and she scowled at Sync. "I just . . . it's what I want! I want to be a powerful, respected mage. I . . . want to be world famous for being a super awesome mage! I don't know how to do it though. So . . . hey, that's it! Your purpose is to help me become a super amazing mage that gets the respect of Tristain and my family!"

Sync sighed and shook his head. "Sorry, but that is far too vague. You need to be specific and clear on what you want or I'm not going to bother to entertain this childish delusion of yours."

"So . . . you don't believe I can do it either, do you?!" said Louise, placing her arms to the sides and curling her fingers into a ball. Her shoulders shook as tears threatened to spill from her eyes. "You just think I'm a worthless idiot who can't accomplish anything, right?! You probably think I don't belong in this school like the rest of them too! Just like . . . just like . . . everyone has told me all my life . . ."

"I didn't say that! You're taking my words out of context," said Sync scowling at her, "I just meant that if you want me to take your proposal seriously then you need to give me a realistic, manageable, and accomplishable set of stretch goals to satisfy so that we can determine your progress in completing your main goal. Otherwise, we have no set of values to determine if we're progressing in any meaningful way to your actual goal. What tasks do we need to be completed, what is the length of these tasks, which tasks are most critical to do now instead of later, and how long do you believe it will take to complete the objective that you've set forth?"

"I don't know . . . I've only just begun my schooling. I haven't thought that far ahead but I really am determined to become a great and strong mage that'll be respected by my family and friends! Even if the other students don't treat me well, I want to become a great mage. I just don't know how to do that when I keep failing at casting the most basic spells." said Louise, her shoulders slackened. She frowned while meeting Sync at eye level. Louise took a deep, calming breath and exhaled. "If you can, help me do that. Help me improve as a mage. I honestly feel lost and I don't know where to begin improving. I constantly feel helpless when I'm picked to make demonstrations in class and I feel ashamed of wasting my family's money because I'm not making any substantial progress. I need to get better but I don't know how to do that and I just feel stuck. I feel like I can't improve no matter how hard I try and I feel helpless when I think about how close I could be to getting expelled. It makes me panic and I try not to cry myself to sleep every night because of how ashamed I am of myself."

Sync loosened his scowl and he looked pensive. Louise took a few deep breathes and swallowed before continuing. "When you murdered Guiche, it really damaged my standing in this school. I feel guilty because I feel like . . . if I hadn't selfishly wanted to prove myself then maybe Guiche would be alive today. If I had dropped out of school during the summoning class because the professor warned me that I could be expelled should I fail, then no one would have died as a consequence. I know that it was ultimately between you and Guiche but I feel responsible. Maybe if I had taken the time to explain to you the difference between nobles and commoners instead of you observing the discrimination at the cafeteria then it might have changed something about the outcome. I was so stupid for not realizing that you had no concept of what those distinguishing characteristics and social realities meant because you came from a different world. I'm truly sorry for that, but I . . . I need you to be my familiar and help me in some meaningful way. I want to prove to myself that I can do better, but I don't know how. As my familiar, could you possibly, just make arrangements on training me to become a strong mage like you? Could you maybe research why I can't seem to cast the most basic of spells and yet summon an otherworldly familiar? Whatever you think could be of help."

Louise stood and waited. Sync was silent for over a minute as he gazed down at her with a pensive visage.

_She's putting a lot of the workload on me. I'm not even sure if this'll be worth my time or a complete waste,_ thought Sync, _A part of me doesn't really care. I just hate living with this shame that pervades everything that I do. Can I really help her? I'm a total foreigner to this world and I feel so empty. Why should I bother?_

"Sync, I'm not sure how much you really value anything," said Louise, "but please, at least for a little while, live for my sake. Help me become better. And tomorrow, if you can manage it, can we please talk over lunch or maybe tea? I think we both need a serious talk when we're both in a calmer state of mind. Would that be alright with you?"

"Alright, I'll hold back my doubts for now and try to help you as best as I can," said Sync, Louise relaxed her posture and sighed with relief. "I'll set up a training schedule for you and I'll research everything I possibly can in your library. It's actually best that I thoroughly research information and gain intel, if I might be living here for a lengthy amount of time. I'll look into your spellwork problem and see what I can do since you're so insistent on becoming better. You seem to be serious about improving so I'll help for now. It will depend on how useful I am for your goal though."

"Let's talk about that tomorrow," said Louise, "I feel really drained so I'm going to take a shower and sleep early."

Louise turned away from Sync. Sync got off the windowsill and walked past Louise. Sync headed out the door. "Alright, I'll go to the library and begin my research now. I can't make any promises."

"I only ask that you do your best . . . and," Louise paused. "Thank you, Sync."

Sync glanced back in surprise and nodded before heading out the door.

_I need to find a way to change Sync's mind about his place in this world . . ._ thought Louise, she walked over to her desk and took out parchment. She took one of her quills, dipped it in ink, and began writing down a list. _I'll take a page from Sync. Okay, just write down the issue and look for possible solutions. I'll ask Siesta for any input and if she's willing to help and hopefully I can come up with an effective strategy to make him see sense._


	3. Ambivalence III

"Thank you for coming to see me, Siesta," said Louise smiling as Siesta entered and sat upon the chair by the desk that was facing Louise's bed. Louise briefly glanced at the window to see the dark and starry skies. "I have something important to discuss with you. I could really use your help."

"Ah, what do you need me to fetch, my Lady?" asked Siesta, her lips twitched upward but the smile didn't meet her eyes.

"I guess I should be frank . . ." said Louise, putting a hand to her chin. She gazed at Siesta directly in her eyes and straightened her posture. "Siesta . . . It's about Sync. I need you to help me with changing Sync's views."

Siesta's eyebrows raised to her forehead before she furrowed them. She narrowed her eyes at Louise. "I'm afraid that I won't be helping you. I'm sure you've heard of the boon that Count Sync has attained. Due to the school's failure to stop the duel, I was informed by one of the staff that I have become his personal maid but I shall still attend to school duties until such a time that my Lord tells me to be elsewhere."

Louise raised her hands up immediately upon hearing Siesta's words. "I'm not trying to manipulate you or to hurt Sync. I'm really concerned about his wellbeing."

Siesta stood up and made a beeline for the door. Louise's eyes widened.

"Siesta, _please_!" shouted Louise as she stretched one of her hands towards Siesta, Siesta grabbed the door knob with one of her hands. "Siesta, earlier today, Sync asked me to kill him to send him back to his world! He believes that he doesn't belong here and should go back to being dead!"

Siesta froze with her hand twisting the knob. She let go and turned around. Her eyes were wide and her cheeks had visibly drained of color. She scowled and opened her mouth before shutting them and loosening her narrowed eyes. Louise moved her hand to the chair to gesture for Siesta to sit down. Siesta walked back and sat heavily onto the chair. They stared at each other in silence.

"Why?" whispered Siesta, her full attention on Louise. Siesta had a pale visage. Louise shifted in her seat before meeting Siesta's gaze at eye level once more.

Louise sighed. "He said that he has no reason to belong here and he never felt he belonged in his old world. There isn't a purpose for him in this world and I intend to have a serious talk to try to change his mind. Right now, I've got him to agree to train me to become a powerful mage but the agreement is tentative unless I can get him to change his views. But I honestly need all the help I can get to do that. Sync could decide to take his own life at any time. Is there anything that you can do to help or perhaps give me some suggestions? What inspired him to help you in the first place?"

"I honestly don't know what I can do," said Siesta, she frowned. "I think Sync defended me because he saw what that monster was doing for the injustice that it was. I honestly couldn't believe someone stood up and defended us from the noble's evil actions. It felt like a dream come true . . . and it was just that."

"Evil?" said Louise, her eyes widened. She blinked. "Siesta . . . you never mentioned that you felt so strongly about the discrimination. Why didn't you mention it to me before?"

Siesta scowled at Louise. Louise flinched. _I never knew Siesta was capable of such a hateful look . . ._

"Nearly all commoners who aren't stupid or insane feel the same way that I do. We all see the stupidity of this system for what it is but we bow our heads because we could never hope to change anything. There is nothing we normal folk can do against freaks of nature who have too much power than they know what to do with." said Siesta, Louise shuddered at the glare that Siesta directed toward her. "Your people physically abuse us to amuse yourselves, shift our employment however you please so that some aristocrats can rape us and identify it as being a noble's mistress, you force us into the most demeaning jobs where we fight among ourselves just to get by each day, and we're ordered to bow our heads and take it with a smile or we get blacklisted from the menial job market and starve to death as a result of unemployment. All the while, we're contractually obligated to shut up and obey or we're left to die. Your people are the most wretched evil to exist."

Louise gasped. "I . . . I had no idea that you felt that way . . . or about the contractual obligations or anything . . ."

"Obviously you wouldn't, you're just a spoiled little girl who worries about making friends and proving she's a good little noble because of the shame attached to your family honor." said Siesta, Louise flinched. "To your kind, all you see from us is beggars who grovel for food, replacements to be exploited and thrown away at your people's whims, and your people take pleasure in beating and raping us while legalizing such depravity by naming us maids, butlers, and mistresses. After women who endure such hardships become pregnant, and usually it's proven the child isn't magical, they're thrown out and their children endure the same cycle of violence and indifference. You people all make me sick!"

"Siesta, I . . . I don't know what to say," said Louise, gazing downward at her feet. "This is all becoming too much for me to deal with. I honestly don't know what to do but I really want to change Sync's mind about killing himself. I need something, anything to keep him set on staying here and living for some purpose but I don't know where to begin."

"Oh please, it sounds to me like you're just upset because you won't get your selfish desire fulfilled," snarled Siesta. Louise looked up at Siesta with wide eyes. Siesta shook her head and gave Louise a visage of utter loathing. "You don't really care about Sync or what he wants, all you care about is exploiting him to appease your family honor and to succeed in your selfish dream of becoming a better mage. That's what always motivated you before Sync arrived and it hasn't changed. As soon as you're finished with him, you won't care whether he lives or dies! You stupid mages are all the same!"

"Siesta, how could you say that?!" snapped Louise glaring back, her palms turned to fists. Tears began streaking down her cheeks and she tried to blink them away. "I . . . I do care! I want him to be happy here and that's why I asked for your help!"

"I don't believe you!" said Siesta rising to her feet, her cheeks flushed red and her teeth clenched. "He was just an object to you before you realized his true value as a mage! You never cared what he wanted until he proved that he was a more capable mage than you! All you care about is proving your status as a noble, to become one of them! You'll just go back to benefitting from the system that beats us, rapes us, and starves us and forces us to obey with a smile as if it's a _privilege_ that you people deign to keep us alive and allow us the luxury of wiping your butts! You don't give a damn at all of what we go through! I . . . I hate people like you!"

Louise stared at Siesta with her mouth agape. Her eyes were wide in stunned silence and she felt tears threaten to spill. Louise whispered. "You . . . you don't mean that . . . !"

Siesta remained silent and glared down at Louise. Louise felt a shiver up her spine. _She can't mean that! Siesta was the only one I could rely on when the going got tough. She would always listen to my complaints . . . Am I not her friend? Was I just some whiny brat to her this whole time? . . . Am I just not worthy enough for anyone to listen to my feelings? Do people just not care when I try to talk to them? . . . Am I always going to feel this lonely for the rest of my life?_

Siesta turned away and walked to the door. She stopped as one of her hands clutched the door knob. She moved her gaze slightly back toward Louise's teary eyed visage. "It was pointless to ask for my help. I have no idea what I could do to keep him here, if he really wants to die."

"Can't you, I don't know, woo him or something?" said Louise, wiping her tears from her eyes.

Siesta turned back and blushed. "What do you mean woo him?"

_Finally, she seems to be listening!_ thought Louise, _Crap, I have no idea where to go from here . . ._

"You know . . . use your womanly charms," said Louise, she shrugged her shoulders. She avoided Siesta's gaze as she began to blush. "A lot of the classmates and some teachers talk about how attractive you are. Maybe . . . use that?"

"Are you asking me to seduce him?" questioned Siesta, her hands moved to her cheeks to hide her blush.

"Maybe . . ." said Louise, forcing herself to look at Siesta. Siesta's eyes were wide. "What about . . . kissing or holding his hands? Perhaps going so far as to make out?"

"So you don't mean . . . er . . ." Siesta paused and gazed at the floor. "becoming Sync's mistress?"

_She thinks I mean . . . oh my . . ._ thought Louise, a blush creeping on her neck. _Well . . . it does have merit . . ._

"Well, bearing his child could possibly ground him and would have more benefits since he's sincere about helping commoners," said Louise, voicing her thoughts. Siesta's face flushed further and became beet red upon hearing Louise's words. "But, that would be going way too far. I just meant . . . charming him enough to make him stay."

_Bearing my Lord a child . . ._ thought Siesta, she visualized being Sync's mistress. _Well, I've been trained for it since I was young. Attractive young commoners are expected to serve their masters in all things. If my Lord does truly seek to end his life and I do nothing to stop it, then I know I would regret it for the rest of my life. But Lord Sync is so handsome, strong, and brave . . . would he accept someone like me being his mistress? I . . . I have to do something to prevent him from ending his life. He's my hero, it's as if he came from my dreams to protect me from those wretched nobles. I must do what I can. I . . . I wouldn't mind being a mistress or bearing his children, if it meant being with him and only him._

"I shall think about it and I'll try talking to him," said Siesta as she turned back to the door, "but I can't make any guarantees."

Siesta opened the door and shut it behind her as she left the room. Louise's shoulders slumped as she got up and headed for her private shower.

_Today has just been a total mess,_ thought Louise, _I really need a hot bath, hopefully the water will relax me. At the rate I'm going, I'll end-up drinking to relieve myself from stress when I'm older. Fuck, I'll think on what to do to change Sync's mind tomorrow morning. I'm too burned out to do any further serious thinking for the day._

* * *

Sync placed his clothes in the drawer and then laid himself upon the twin-sized bed. He turned to see Siesta already on the bed with only her undergarments on. She turned to her side to face him. Sync turned to his side to gaze at her. Sync blushed and his body froze as Siesta moved between the already miniscule space between them to hug Sync. She pressed her body on his and nestled her head upon the crook of his neck. Sync stiffened.

_Last night, it was really awkward and we tried to remain on the sides to avoid bumping into each other._ thought Sync, _What changed?_

"Did I ever thank you for getting me these briefs for sleepwear?" asked Sync, _Hopefully, I can get her off of me._

"Oh those, I believe you did." said Siesta, moving off his neck and gazing up at him with a smile. "And it was no trouble, we had spares given by the school and they don't care if you've been given one since we have more than enough."

Sync nodded. A silence descended between them. Siesta sighed.

"My Lord, I did something horrible today," said Siesta, Sync frowned. _I wish she wouldn't call me her Lord . . ._ "Ever since you stood up for me, it gave me hope. Hope that my life and the lives of other commoners would finally be changed by someone powerful and capable enough to do it. But it also brought back all the things that made me angry and all that I tried to ignore all of my life."

Tears began falling down Siesta's cheeks. Sync remained silent. Siesta continued. "I didn't realize it until after Guiche died but . . . I've always been living in fear. All of my life, I've tried to be numb and just smile, hoping that the next day will be better than the last. Hoping I don't do anything to upset the nobles, hoping I don't cause offense and make sure to keep my head down and ignore the times when I saw my friends taken away to become noble mistresses, ignore the starving kids in the poorer areas hoping to work or steal money to feed themselves, try to fight for what's mine and not feel guilty that I've deprived another commoner of a real chance at three meals a day, ignore the groping and obnoxious comments by nobles, and the violence conducted upon us with no justice for any physical injuries or deaths."

"I understand," replied Sync, Siesta's eyes widened as she gazed at Sync. "I grew up being forced to fight, kill, and survive all my life. Nobody really cared if I starved and died for a long time either until I became useful to other people who needed the skills I developed. One of my earliest memories was being thrown into a volcano because I was considered a failed test subject. I saw people who looked exactly like me get burned alive as they screamed for help. I was the only one of the six children to crawl out of that mess alive. After that, I was forced into becoming a soldier the day after being born, and worked my way up from simple reading and writing to killing enemies of the religious organization I worked for. Although, I always felt like it was the only option I had, with no other real means of survival and no real choice in the matter because of what I was. Even now, I always feel this constant shame in being who I am."

Siesta gasped. "B - but you shouldn't! You're strong, and brave, and very kind!"

"You don't know me at all," said Sync, furrowing his brows. Siesta flinched. "I have none of those qualities."

"Th - that's not true at all! You're like . . . like a hero to me! You stood up against a system that's done nothing but bring me suffering for all of my life, your protected me when everyone else looked away, and you killed an evildoer before he could go on and do it to someone else," said Siesta, she raised herself slightly to gaze down at Sync. "Please . . . stop thinking negatively about yourself! You're a wonderful person. If nothing else, you've proven it to me. If it wasn't for you, I'd probably be suffering from deep gashes and several broken bones because that moron had a temper tantrum and I just happened to be there. If that doesn't prove you're kind, and strong, and brave, then what else possibly could?"

"There's a lot you don't know about me," replied Sync, as Siesta moved back down and laid beside him. "I undertook many questionable and awful actions in the world I came from."

"Well . . . they don't matter here," said Siesta, smiling at him. "besides, they're part of the past. You should try to look ahead."

Sync shook his head slightly. "Even that concept is new to me. I've never really been in charge of my own life before. I've always needed a reason. I've commanded others to conduct actions for me and had to change strategies in the battlefield so I understand free choice to a certain extent, but I doubt I have any real purpose here."

Siesta took one of his hands to hers and clasped it tightly. Sync felt her warm slender fingers clutch and shake. Siesta gave him a disarming smile. "You'll never know until you try to find something . . ."

_How does the Score here work?_ thought Sync, _I should probably ask Louise tomorrow . . ._

"What was that you mentioned before," said Sync, "about having done something terrible? I'm sure you know that I took custody of you, I hope you don't mind, so if you're having any trouble with the staff then I'm sure I can get you out of it."

Siesta shook her head slightly. "It has nothing to do with the staff and I don't mind the fact that I work for you now. Unlike the school staff, noble students, and the government liaison, I know that you don't have any untoward intentions. What I did was take out my anger over the discrimination on Louise. I just felt a swelling of hate for everything I've been through and for the treatment of my fellow commoners. After the hope you gave me when you killed Guiche, I couldn't numb myself from the pain I've held back for so many years. I didn't know what to do so I just . . . lashed out at Louise. If I'm being entirely honest, I think I did it because I knew Louise wouldn't really fight back and it's because she considers me a friend. Can you believe that? I'm sure that sounds completely obnoxious and horrible, I feel so guilty for the satisfaction I felt at finally getting back at a noble. A part of me wants to keep yelling at her because I know it'll affect her, unlike other nobles, but at the same time I feel horrible. I know that she may seem stuck up and naive, but Louise really is a caring person and I do consider her a friend. I don't really know how to make it up to her though."

"I . . . really don't have any advice to give," said Sync, he sighed. "I never really had friends growing up. The closest thing to it was a fellow co-worker who had a stick up his ass and a lot to prove to himself. In the end, I couldn't see eye to eye with him but I did understand why he wouldn't join the same cause that I did. He ended-up dying before I did. I was too scared to tell him that I sometimes considered him a friend, since he was the only one who would give my skills any sort of praise and he trusted me with some of his personal assignments. To be honest, I did feel regret for never being able to tell him that I would probably be one of the people saddened by his passing on the battlefield."

"I'm just happy that you took the time to listen," said Siesta smiling at him, "I think I'll just tell Louise, hopefully in a respectful manner, that I didn't mean to hurt her with what I said. Hopefully, she will understand."

Sync said nothing. He yawned. _Well, it's not really any of my business how they feel about each other. I'm not going to interfere._

"Lady Louise told me . . ." began Siesta, she was visibly frowning and seemed hesitant. Sync waited for Siesta to gather her thoughts. "about her conversation with you earlier. She wanted my help to convince you to stay."

_Weird . . . I don't feel upset by that at all,_ thought Sync, _Well, it concerns her life circumstances too. I'm actually relieved I wasn't the one who had to break it to her of what the future could possibly entail._

"Well . . ." Sync paused and blushed. _What should I say to that?_ "Er . . . if you think you have something to offer me that could change my opinion, then go ahead and try. I'm skeptical about remaining here though. I just don't see a point."

"I could . . . give you physical intimacy, if you like . . ." said Siesta, her cheeks flushing pink but her visage gazing at him in earnest. Sync's eyes widened and he gaped at her. His face becoming beet red in a matter of seconds. "It . . . it's only appropriate for a servant such as myself to please her Master. I knew it would happen eventually and for it to be you . . . well, I would be absolutely willing! It wouldn't be out of fear and . . . I think we could both enjoy the experience."

"Siesta, don't be ridiculous," snapped Sync, Siesta flinched and frowned at him. Sync let out an aggravated sigh and took a deep breath before continuing. "Look, I just tell it like it is, I don't believe that going in that direction so suddenly would be good for you. I understand that I made your life better and that you want to repay me, but going in that direction would be disastrous for both of us; I struggle with myself everyday with this . . . certainty, that I'm utterly worthless. I feel ashamed of everything I do, because I know it's ultimately meaningless."

Sync sighed at Siesta's troubled expression and continued. "I just . . . know that to be a fact about my life. I didn't want you to be harmed and if you dislike anything I say then I want you to tell me to my face without fear."

Siesta tilted her head slightly and slowly grabbed one of Sync's hands and clasped it over her chest. Sync blushed and furrowed his brows. Sync attempted to remain stoic as Siesta gazed upon him with a visage of yearning.

"My Lord . . . it may be inappropriate for me to speak against you on this, but . . . as you've afforded me the freedom. I want you to know . . . I feel that I must insist upon telling you that you are absolutely wrong." began Siesta, choosing her words carefully. Sync nodded to encourage her to continue. "You saved my life. I would be tortured and then likely sold as a sex slave if you hadn't intervened on my behalf; it's because Nobles have such rights over Commoners. I never thought that I would stop feeling this fear that I was raised to accept. Being a Commoner means being dead to the world because we have to live in fear of our personal safety at one incorrect word, or one accidental spill, or for no other reason than because Nobles want to attack or rape us because they can. I never thought I could feel safe; I never dreamed of feeling like how the Nobles do. So . . . I don't know how to fully express this, but I want to do my best to help you find a purpose."

Siesta's cheeks flushed red as she gazed at Sync directly in the eyes. Sync fidgeted but tried to maintain the gaze. _What is she trying to say?_

"I'm your Servant and I can only help you with how I've been trained and raised to, and you're my hero, so please . . . use me however you see fit." said Siesta in a confident tone, her visage turning a beet red. Sync's cheeks flushed pink at her words. "I want to show you how much you mean to me. I can't thank you enough for all you did for me in such a short timeframe. So please, heed Louise's words and stay with us, I want you to know that while what would have happened to me is vile under other circumstances; if it's with you, then I would willingly and eagerly accept your decision. If you wish for me to be your personal maid forever, I would gladly do so; if you wish for me to bear your child, I would consider it the highest honor. So please, _please_ stay . . ."

Sync froze as he tried to process her viewpoint. _I could take her offer and do whatever I wanted to her sexually. She just gave me her unambiguous consent . . . I can't believe this. Well, I suppose her Score reading imposes those restrictions on her. I could just do it. I could have sex with her with no real consequences for me personally. I have power over her and I'm recognized by the legitimate authority to do as I please. I . . ._

"I'm sorry, Siesta. But . . . all of this is making my head spin. I feel it's going by too fast. Like I said before, I don't want to unintentionally harm you." said Sync, Siesta frowned but nodded. She let go of his hand and he moved it to his side. "I would be lying if I said that your wellbeing doesn't matter to me. If it's the fear of safety that has you concerned, I could arrange for you to inherit my title and lands to -"

"No, My Lord, I want to do my best to repay you back for everything you have done for me." interrupted Siesta, she moved closer to him. Sync froze as Siesta's head was under his chin as she leaned her entire half-naked body onto his and pressed their bodies together. "May we just . . . stay like this in each other's embrace? Nothing sexual. But may I just . . . hug you to show my affection?"

Sync let slip an aggravated sigh. To his chagrin, Siesta looked up and smirked at him. He replied. "Well, alright . . . I guess that would be fine."

Siesta moved her face to the side and pressed her cheek to his heart. Sync felt his erection harden as Siesta pressed her bra-enclosed bosoms onto his body, he felt her body lined almost perfectly with his to the point that he felt a wave of warmth, and she hugged him close to allow him to feel her warmth too. The closeness made Sync feel a bizarre phenomena of his heart soaring and Siesta giggled softly upon feeling his manhood on her womanhood through the fabric of their clothing. Slowly, he drifted off to sleep with Siesta holding him close in a calm, dreamless night of contentment.

"Every moment I wake, I dream of what it means to be alive . . ." whispered Siesta, just before she allowed herself to fall to sleep. A quiet resolve forming within her. "You made my dream into a reality. Perhaps this is too sudden, perhaps I'm stupid to think and feel this but . . . I love you, My Lord."


End file.
